Heavy weight issues under the spotlight at EUPRIO 2012 | euprio.eu

Venue for EUPRIO 2012: Gothenburg, Sweden

There are some really heavy weight issues to be discussed at this year?s annual conference of the European Universities Public Relations and Information Officers association (EUPRIO) in Gothenburg, Sweden, from September 6-8, 2012.

?Under the theme of ?The social contract between universities and society? we will be looking at how European universities should use communications as a key tool to win public support in their fight against cutbacks and challenge the assumption that higher education savings can be easily made because the majority of voters are not interested in the valuable role universities play?, says EUPRIO President Paolo Pomati.

Setting the scene will be Professor Ole Petters Ottersen, the Rector of the University of Oslo, who will argue that universities need to redefine their mission, particularly after the tragedy at Ut?ya in Norway ? where 69 students and other young people lost their lives.

Professor Ottersen will call for more openness between academia and society to try to find the solutions to many of society?s ills ? whether something as inconceivable as the massacre of Ut?ya or how to achieve sustainable development, equality in health service delivery or promote democracy.

Master classes

The conference will then divide into master classes ? led by a very strong pan-European team of communication professionals.

Here the topics vary quite widely and include ?How to get your strategic plan accepted? with tips and advice from Monique Jipping, who worked for six years as director of communications at Utrecht University. She?ll be discussing how communications professionals can learn how to be taken seriously when asked to provide strategic advice to their universities in a ?tricks of the trade? session.

Among the alternative master classes is one, led by Thomas Estermann, from the European Universities Association (EUA). This will look at possible scenarios for the future of higher education funding and governance and the need for universities and their management to adapt to increasing expectations and declining public budgets. The focus will be on the massive implications for communication professionals.

That?s just a taster of what is offer. See the conference programme and the speakers? information on the EUPRIO website to select the master classes and workshops you wish to attend.

Google and Universities

The conference will draw to a close with a talk from Dr David J Harper, Head of University Relations at Google ? a role he has had for three years while developing university relationships in Europe.

His talk will explore the social contract between Google, universities and their communities and provide a high-level overview of Google?s approach to building relationships with higher education.

?Google is a bottom-up, engineer-led company and I will describe how this has influenced our programmes of support for universities ? our approach to engineering management and communications ? and the development of our various communication and social tools including Gmail, Google Docs (now Drive) and Google+,? he explains.

There?s plenty more and a great social programme, as always, which is an excellent way to network and build contacts for the future.

So, don?t delay in reserving your place at Gothenburg via http://euprio.eu/conference/

Euprio Awards

* And remember the closing date for entries to the EUPRIO Awards is approaching fast; see EUPRIO award 2012. for details about how to enter.

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About Nic Mitchell

UK-based freelance public relations consultant Nic Mitchell specialises in British and European higher education. A journalist before moving into media relations and marketing, he set up De la Cour Communications to encourage greater European student mobility and closer links between universities and industry. Last year, he won EUPRIO?s Best Print Project Award for editing Teesside University?s Research and Enterprise magazine. Nic represented the UK on EUPRIO?s Steering Committee from 2001 to 2011, and is the Chairman of the National Union of Journalists Public Relations and Information Industrial Council. He has an MSc in Public Relations by Distance Learning from the University of Stirling, Scotland. A fuller profile can be found at www.linkedin.com/in/nicmitchell Tweet him @EuprioNic or look at his De la Cour Communications web site

Source: http://euprio.eu/2012/07/17/heavy-weight-issues-under-the-spotlight-at-euprio-2012/

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